Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 4, 2026

Modeling Chemotherapy Resistant Leukemia In Vitro
Published on: February 9, 2016
Oxygen tension regulates NK cells differentiation from hematopoietic stem cells in vitro
Sohyun Yun1, Suk Hyung Lee, Suk-Ran Yoon
1Cell Therapy Research Center, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Republic of Korea.
Abstract:
Natural killer (NK) cells are differentiated from hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) which are located at the lowest end of an oxygen gradient within the bone marrow (BM). In this report, we investigated whether oxygen tension could affect NK cell differentiation from hematopoietic cells in vitro. We found that hypoxia led to an inhibition of differentiation in NK cells, and increased oxygen supply alleviated this inhibition and restored NK cell differentiation under hypoxic condition. Hypoxia-treated cells demonstrated reduced mRNA expression of transcription factors (TFs) that have important roles in NK cell differentiation, such as EOMES, T-bet, GATA-3 and ETS-1. Moreover, hypoxia-pretreated cells recovered mRNA expression of TFs when the oxygen tension was changed to normoxia. Our findings suggest that oxygen tension modulates in vitro differentiation of NK cells through the regulation of TF expression.
Related Concept Videos
Regulation of Hematopoietic Stem Cells
Role of Hematopoietic Growth Factors
Thrombopoietin (TPO), mainly released by the liver,...
Factors Affecting Erythropoiesis
Several factors influence the erythrocyte production rate, with tissue oxygen level being among the most critical. Intense exercise or high altitudes can cause tissue hypoxia, which triggers the kidneys to release more erythropoietin (EPO) into the bloodstream.
EPO then...
Regulation of Angiogenesis and Blood Supply
Lineage Commitment
Multipotency of Hematopoietic Stem Cells
